The Time Traveler's Wife: Smallville Style
by RedTailedHawkens
Summary: Clark Kent is a time-traveler. With no control over his ability, he has allowed his power and fear control his life. That is, until he meets a spunky reporter who knows everything about him, including that some day he will love her. Based on movie.
1. Chapter 1: Meeting Chloe: Clark's POV

The Time Travelers Wife: Smallville Style.

Author's Note: As the title implies, this story is based on the movie _The Time Travelers Wife._ I say movie, because I have not read the book yet, though I plan to. I thought the movie was all right, but I get the feeling it lacks a lot of things that would be in the book. Anyway, I liked the concept, and thought it would be interesting to use for a Smallville fanfiction. I checked, and nobody has done this yet. I decided to use Chloe for this story, because I love her and Clark, but I have been having trouble finding the right context to set them up in a story where it would make sense for them to be together romantically. I do not ever want to force the characters to do things or couples to be together when it would make absolutely no sense for the characters to act that way given the circumstances. I can only set up the scenario; the characters will control their reaction. I think I have ranted about this before in other stories, and no doubt will rant about it again, but that is only because I feel very strongly about it, both as a writer, and a fan.

I would like to say right now, that just because Chloe is the female love interest in this story, that does not mean I will make Lois or Lana bitches if I put them in. I love them, and I love Chloe, so if you like stories where all other love interests are bashed, consider yourself warned. Also, for those of you who have read _The Time Travelers Wife_, go easy on me. Remember, I have not read the book. Hopefully I can do justice to the story. Here we go.

Chapter One

Meeting Chloe

Clark's POV

This is not your average kind of love story, not that any are. I am not the most romantic kind of guy, so I apologize if this story lacks a little, but I felt it needed to be told. Or maybe I just felt like I needed to tell it. My name is Clark Kent, and I am a time traveler.

The first time I ever traveled was when I was eight years old. My parents had just told me I was adopted. The next thing I knew, I was watching two people, who I later discovered were my birthparents, putting a baby in a basket and dropping it off at my adoptive parents porch. My parents were time travelers too, I mean, my biological ones. You see, this thing I have, it is genetic. It is kind of like disease. That 'disease' is a part of why they put me up for adoption, but I am getting ahead of myself in the story. Telling these events in order would be impossible, so all I can do is tell them as they happened to me.

The day it all started, from my perspective, was the day I started my new job. It was hard, finding a job. See, the traveling, it is not exactly something I can control, and, well, it can be hard to explain why you suddenly disappear from work, literally before the eyes of your coworkers. I needed a job that would let me work privately, and would give me a flexible schedule. Basically, I needed a job anybody could do so nobody would pay much attention to me. After some failed attempts at anonymous jobs, I ended working at a post office. Obviously, that did not last, since it was pretty hard to deliver mail on time with the constant disappearing, but I got the job, and I figured, as long as nobody actually saw me disappear, I would be okay.

My first day was going fine, I delivered a couple packages, and I only disappeared once. Luckily, it was between deliveries. Then, I sorted some mail, and then I did some more deliveries. However, there was one delivery in particular that was pretty important. It was addressed to somebody at the Daily Planet. I do not really remember who, probably because it was not all that important. What was important was that, when I was turning to leave, I ran into _her._

I literally ran into her. Actually I made her drop her papers, and bent down to help her pick them up. When we stood, our eyes met. She started staring at me, with this strange expression on her face. I do not really know how to describe it. It was happy, and shocked, and, I do not know what else. She would be better at describing it. She is the writer, not me.

"Hi." She said. It wasn't the kind of hi you said to a stranger who made you drop your papers, it was the sort of hi you said to a long lost friend. I looked at her, confused.

"Sorry about your papers…I'm sorry, do I know you?" I had not meant to ask, but the look she was giving me was a little bit strange. Her face fell a little, and then she put on a new smile, a different kind of smile.

"Sorry, I'm Chloe. Chloe Sullivan."

"Clark Kent." I said, reaching out my hand.

"I know." she said. I looked at her again, "Um, look, don't worry about the papers." She said, trying to change the subject.

"Do I know you?" I asked again. I was almost certain we had never met, but there was something about the way she was acting…

"No," she said, turning to leave, "But you will."

I stood there confused for a minute. I was about to leave, when she came back with a piece of paper.

"I don't know about your schedule right now, but give me call when you have the time and we'll talk."

She turned again, and this time, she left for real. I did not know what to say. I looked at the piece of paper with her number that she had given me. Normally, I would not even think of using it, but there was something about her.


	2. Chapter 2: Meeting Clark: Chloe's POV

Chapter Two

Meeting Clark

Chloe's POV

It never really occurred to me to write an autobiography; mostly because it would probably read like a science fiction novel. However, I have kept journals over the years, and lord knows I have a story to tell. It all started when I was about six years old.

Ever since I can remember, I wanted to be reporter. I had a soft spot for anything strange or unexplained. I loved and lived on the weird and bizarre. It is a little ironic when you think about it. Anyway, the first day of first grade, we were supposed to talk about what we did over the summer. I told everybody how I had been up to this campsite with my dad and we had seen Bigfoot's tracks. Some annoying prissy girl in my class named Shelia said Bigfoot was not real and my dad and I had probably just seen bear tracks. Looking at the tracks, the teacher agreed with her, though she complimented me for my "active imagination." Naturally, I was furious. I knew it was Bigfoot. It had to be.

After school, I packed a sleeping bag and went out the door on a mission. I was going to find Bigfoot and prove what I had said was true. I did not actually know where we had been camping. I knew we had not gone far from home, because my dad was hardly a great outdoorsmen. I was not either. I had grown up in the big city of Metropolis, and I was neither knowledgeable about, nor comfortable in the woods. The truth is, I never even got to leave the city, let alone locate that camping spot. I made it as far as some park I had never been to before. It was getting dark. I was tired, and, though I would never admit it, a little scared.

That was when I heard it, a rustle in the bushes.

"Whose there?" I asked, in the bravest voice I could muster.

"It's Clark." He said as if that was supposed to mean something to me.

"Clark who?" I asked, trying to remain calm.

I heard him sigh, "I'm guessing we haven't met before?" he asked. It seemed like a perfectly stupid question to me. Of course we had not met before.

"What do you want?" I asked.

"Well, this is going to sound kind of strange, but is there any chance you have a blanket or something with you?"

He was right, it was a strange question, but it was enough to peak my journalistic curiosity. And as it happened, I did have a blanket with me. Remember, I had been planning to camp out in search of Bigfoot.

I offered the blanket up to the voice behind the bush and it sucked it in like the bush was a mouth and the blanket was a strand of spaghetti

He came out from behind the bush then. He was a tall man, with dark black hair and warm, worried blue eyes. He had wrapped himself up in the blanket I gave him.

"Who are you?" I asked again.

"I told you."

"You told me your _name_." I say, "But who _are_ you?" Pretty gutsy for a six-year-old, huh?

He looked at me, like he was trying to make up his mind, or maybe he was just trying to figure out how to tell me, or how much to tell me. "My name is Clark Kent. I'm from the future."

Now, as I said before, I was pretty open-minded to scientific mysteries, but I was not gullible enough to believe anything I heard. Besides, my wounds were still fresh from the whole Bigfoot experience.

"Did Shelia put you up to this?" I asked, sure that my new enemy was involved in some sinister trick against me.

He chuckled, "No, Chloe, nobody put me up to this."

"How do you know my name?"

"I told you. I'm from the future. I can travel throughout time, to the future, to the past. And in my time, you and I are friends. Good friends in fact. So good, that I know the first thing to pop into your head when I told you I knew you grown up was questioning whether you work at the Daily Planet. "

I looked at him, surprised. It was not like I had made any secret of my goal, but I was only six. There were not many people for me to tell; really, only my parents knew what I wanted for my future.

"Are you a mind reader too?" I asked. My tone was a little sarcastic, because I did not want him to think I believed him yet. I was not sure if I did. But what if he were? A mind reader! And a time traveler! It was the most exciting thing to ever happen to me.

But he chuckled again and said, "No, I just know you…really well." There was some look in his eye when he said the last part, a look I could not quite describe. Whatever it was, it made his eyes sparkle.

"Chloe, I need you to promise me something." I looked up at him, waiting, "pretty soon, I'm going to disappear, right in front of your eyes. I am going to go back to my time. And I know the first thing you are going to want to do is try and track down any guy named Clark Kent." _He did know me _"And I need you to promise me you won't do that, because you and I are not supposed to meet for a long, long time, and if we change that, something very bad might happen to one or both of us. I honestly do not know what, but you have to trust me. And I know that almost nothing can curb your curiosity, but I also know you are incredibly loyal and you would never break a promise to a friend."

"We aren't friends." I say, only half meaning it when I say it. We do not know each other, and I know I should not trust him, but something about him makes me want to.

"We will be." He says with a smile.

I think for a minute. Finally, I smile, "I promise."

"Okay." He says.

"But if we are friends, can you tell me why you did not have any clothes on until I gave you the blanket?"

"When I time travel, my body travels, but my clothes get left behind."

"Oh…well, you know I actually have one of my dad's T-shirts in my duffle bag."

He looks at me shocked, blushes a little, and then starts to laugh. "Well, try and remember for next time."

"I thought you said we aren't supposed to meet for a while."

"We aren't, not you and the me from your time, but me from the future, I'll be back."

I smiled. He smiled back at me. Then his body started to fade away right in front of me. Part of him was there, but parts of his body, his ears, and then the sides of his face, his fingers, then his hands, the spaces where those parts should be were empty. Less and less of him was there, and then he was gone. I walked where he had been, expecting to bump into his invisible body. For some reason, that made more sense in my six-year-old mind.

That was the first time I saw Clark Kent, but it was not the last. He kept his promise. I would see him again.


	3. Chapter 3: Second Meeting: Clark's POV

Author's Note: Sorry it took so long for this update. Please enjoy, and I look forward to reviews.

Chapter Three

The Second Meeting

Clark's POV

It took me a while to get up the nerve, as I was pretty confused, but finally, I called Chloe up. She was not there, so I left a message for her to meet me at this restaurant I know in town. It had not been that long since I last traveled, and normally, there is at least an hour interval. I just prayed it was good enough to last me.

I got lucky; I did not fade out. I met her right on time. She was waiting at a table, looking around. She smiled when she saw me. She had a nice smile. It was big, and it made her glow just a little bit.

I took a seat across from her.

"I'll be honest. I wasn't sure you were going to make it."

"Neither was I." I said. She chuckled, and so did I, "I'm glad I did though."

"Me too." She said. She was still smiling at me.

"So, I'm sorry, how do I know you?"

She bit her lip, "I'm not sure I'm supposed to tell you. At least, not yet. It might freak you out."

I laugh, "You know, there isn't a lot that can freak me out."

She raises her eyebrows and smiles, "Oh, I know. I just think that this might be … a little much for you. At least, it might be a little much at first. I was warned to give you time, let you get to know me first. I know it takes you a long time to feel comfortable with somebody."

"Warned by who?"

"Sorry, but that's all you get for today. It's your little clue. Maybe it will help you when it's time to put the pieces together." I'm staring at her like she's insane and she's just going on like this is perfectly normal and she totally expected me to react this way. She picks up her menu and starts to look through it, "So, should we order then?" I don't know what to say. I just sit there, gaping. She chuckles a little, "Come on, don't be like that. Why don't we just pretend that this is just an ordinary first date and forget the rest for now? We'll have plenty of time for all the messy stuff."

Finally, I pick up a menu. "The salmons good here." I say. I feel like an idiot, but it is all I can think to say.

"I don't eat fish." She says, "I did this article a couple of years ago about the process involved in killing them, and I haven't really been able to look at a plate of tuna the same since. It's a little funny, because when I was little, I loved tuna salad. I practically lived off it and nothing else for a while." She said with a chuckle.

"So, you're a vegetarian?" I said, feeling a little more comfortable. This was more typical first date conversation. Not that I had been on a first date in a long time, but my comfort level would have been a lot worse if the conversation had not normalized.

"No, it's just fish. I can live with eating chicken or beef so long as I never have to see the process. And I certainly know better than to do that again."

"That's a little odd." I said, chuckling

"Well, everybody's a little odd, aren't they?" It would be odder to be normal, I think."

The waiter came over and we ordered drinks and a couple of chicken salads. I was thankful she did not order anything too expensive. I did not really have a lot.

"There's nothing wrong with normal." I said when the waiter left.

"Normal is boring, and extremely overrated."

"It's better than weird and freakish." I said, shifting uncomfortably. That was how I saw myself, as weird and freakish, because of what I could do, because of what I was. Someday, if I knew her long enough, I knew she would see me that was too.

The waiter came over and placed our drinks on the table. "I've always loved all things freakish. Being different, having something that makes you … special, it can be pretty spectacular." She said. There was a mysterious glint in her eye as she said it.

I leaned in closer, "You never just wish you could fit in?" I asked in a low voice.

She took a sip of her drink, "I did once. It was during those horribly awkward teen years when everybody feels like an outsider. But then a good friend told me that everything he liked about me, was everything that made me different. All those things little things that made me feel so different gave me something that the others didn't have. He was more different than anyone, but he reminded me then, that if he were not so different, we might have never met." She paused, seemingly lost in thought, maybe a memory of this good friend of hers. Then she continued, "Everything in life has a purpose, Clark, including being different. You think your differences drive people away, but they are the things that draw people to you." She was looking at me in a strange way. It was almost like she could see right through me. It was a peculiar look, and it made me a little nervous, but it was also oddly reassuring. "It is great to be different. In fact, I cannot think of anything better." She kept smiling at me, that odd, reassuring smile. It was the sort of smile you gave your kid when he did not make the basketball team and he felt like a loser, but you knew he was a really good player, and you wanted him to know it too. I realized she must know I felt insecure about my own oddities, and she was trying to reassure me. If only she knew.

We talked for a while. It was nice. She was nice. She was certainly different, but in a good way. She told me about her family, and her dreams of being a big time reporter. I told her a little about myself too. Sometimes, I would say something, and she would nod and smile that way people do when you are telling them a story they've heard before, but they don't want insult you so they pretend like it is their first time hearing it. Other times, she seemed so surprised by something I told her, it almost made me surprised at it, even if it was a fact I had known for years.

When dinner was over, I walked her home. I wanted to kiss her goodnight, but I could not. I was too shy. And it was only a first date. I said goodbye, and without warning, she placed her lips softly against mine. It was very simple at first, a very sweet, innocent kiss, but then it became hungrier. I could feel her pulling at my hair, playing with it, jerking on it hard. I felt myself feeling hungrier as well, drinking her in completely, wanting more of her, getting drunk on her. I felt something I had never felt before. I wanted to burst through her front door, lay her down on her bed, and ravage her. I wanted to taste every inch of her. It was such a complete, utter wanting as I had never felt. It consumed me.

Finally, our lips parted. I traced her cheek with my thumb, and she smiled. She stepped back and unlocked her door. "Goodnight, Clark." She said, "This was … perfect."

I watched her disappear into her apartment.


	4. Chapter 4: Second Meeting: Chloe's POV

Chapter Four

The Second Meeting

Chloe's POV

The next time I saw Clark, I was at school. It was gym class, and we were playing softball. The ball rolled off into the bushes and I went after it. And there he was. He was dressed this time though.

"I thought you didn't get to bring clothes with you." I said.

He turned at my voice, and he smiled down at me. Even now that I am all grown up, he is pretty tall, but back then, he was gigantic, "I don't, but I appeared a few blocks from here, and I found some." On closer inspection, I noticed the clothes did not fit him very well. They were far too big for him. As if reading my mind, he said, "They don't always fit right, but I take what I can get. Pretty much anything is better than running around naked."

"I wish I knew you were coming. We could have done something." I said. I was a little disappointed. I wanted to get to know this mysterious person but I had to get back to stupid gym class.

"Well, how about we make a deal? You keep a journal of all the dates I come to see you, every single time. And when you grow up, you can show it to me. Then I'll know when you should next expect me, and I can tell you."

I put my finger to my chin and though about it, "Is that what I do?" I ask, "Because if it is, why couldn't you have told me about it last time. Then I could have known you were coming today." I was pouting a little, I know, but give me a break, I was a little kid. Kids pout. It is historically documented.

"Because you only just told me about it. A couple of the times I visit you, I won't know about it yet, so I'll try to give you good advance notice."

"You mean … you don't visit me in order."

He shook his head, "The first time I visited you, you were nine years old."

"So, when you come and see me when I'm nine, you won't know me?" I asked, a little concerned.

He chuckled, "Well, I'll know older you. We will be good friends by then. But it will be the first time I travel back to meet you."

"Doesn't this ever confuse you?" I ask, holding my head for affect.

"More than you can imagine, but it gets easier … you, make it easier."

I smiled. I looked up at him, and he faded away again. I blinked. I wondered if that ever got any easier, having him disappear right before my very eyes.

"Chloe, come on!" someone from my class called. I picked up the softball, and headed back. When I got home that night, I took out one of my reporters' notebooks, and wrote Clark Dates on the first page. On the second page, I wrote, visit one, then the date, which was only a few weeks ago, and then the time he had come. It was lucky I was a reporter; most people would not have been able to remember that kind of detail. Then, I wrote down visit two, today's date, and during gym class. I closed the book, and held it close to my chest. I fell asleep with it in my arms.


	5. Chapter 5: 3rd Time's Charm: Clark's POV

Author's Note: Sorry about the shortness of the chapter. This chapter sort of has two parts, so the rest will come later.

Chapter Five

3 Time's The Charm

Clark's POV

I spent two weeks trying to figure everything out. I was dying to call Chloe, but before I did, I needed to figure out just who she was, and how she knew so much about me. I went to The Daily Planet website and read all her articles. They were interesting and well written, but none of then really gave me a clue as to how she knew me. I shook my head, frustrated, and tried to go over our conversations in my head. My memory is pretty good. It is not perfect, nobody's is, but it's decent enough, and pretty much everything Chloe had said to me made a very big impression, either because it was so out there, or just because she was the one who said it. I had to admit, she had an affect on me, a calming affect. At the same time, though, she seemed to excite me. And that kiss. That had been something. My romantic history is not completely blank, in fact, it might fill up a few chapters or even a novella, but never have I felt something quite like that kiss. The way she kissed me, I cannot even explain it. It was just … something. It was really something. I tried to focus. What had she said? How could she know me already? Unless …

I picked up the phone to call her, "Hey."

"Hey, I was wondering when you were going to call. I was beginning to worry that I'd scared you off."

"No, you didn't. I just had some stuff to work out, but, listen, are you free now?"

"What's with Mr. Spontaneity?"

"No time like the present, especially if you're me."

She laughed, "I guess you're right." Yep, she knows. "So, what do you want to do?"

"I thought maybe we could meet up at the park."

She paused, " I love the park." She said. There was something about the way she said it …

"Great. I'll see you soon."

"Okay. Bye."

We hung up, and I headed towards the park. Unfortunately, I got a little sidetracked, because just a block away from the park, I could feel it start to happen. It started to feel sick, then I felt numb, I started to fade, and then, I was gone.


	6. Chapter 5: Part II: Clark's POV

Chapter Five: Part II

Clark's POV

When I woke up, I was floating slowly down, well, I did not know, a river, or maybe a pool. I could not tell. I heard some kid say something about the big naked man in the water, and a woman screaming. I lost my balance and started to fall down into the water. The water started to fill up my lungs as I struggled to get to the surface. Then, I felt a pair of arms wrap around me and pull me out of the water. Once I was on dry land, and my breathing had steadied, I looked up at my savior. I was slightly shocked as I came face to face with an older version of myself. I did not look that different, other than the fact that I was not naked and had a slightly different hairstyle, but I knew I had to be older, because I had no memory of saving myself from drowning.

Then, for the very first time, I got to see what I looked like to others when I disappear. It was odd, eerie even. Seeing yourself disappear into thin air is not something all that easy to prepare for, even when your life is as weird as mine. Then, I felt myself shift again, and I was in a kitchen I did not recognize. A woman approached me cautiously, and on closer inspection, I discovered that it was Chloe. She was a lot older. She had gray hair, and glasses, and she was wearing a bathrobe. She smiled at me as I appeared before her feet.

"You're late." She said. For a second, I was worried that I had never returned, that she had been waiting to meet up with me for all those years. Then I realized how ridiculous that sounded. She simply meant she had been expecting me. I noticed a chess board was set up on a table, and there was a chair on either side. Chloe took a seat that put her in control of the black pieces, and waited patiently for me to get the hint. I quickly scrambled over to the table, feeling self-conscious about my nudity, but too disoriented by how calm she was being to ask for clothing. She simply laughed at how squirrelly I was acting, and handed me a bathrobe. It was just my size, but I should not have been surprised about that.

We played a quiet game, Chloe occasionally bringing up the weather, or the Brontë book she had been working her way through, and I did my best to respond appropriately.

When the game was done, with Chloe as the victor, she closed the board up and smiled at me. Then she laughed. At first, I feel insulted, certain she is laughing at me, but her laughter is infectious, and soon I joined in. She grabbed my cheek with her elderly hand and runs her fingers over the features of my face, "You are so young." She said, her voice breathy.

"I suppose…" I said, not sure how to respond.

She laughed again. As if reading my mind, she said, "Clark, you never have to worry about offending me. I know I am so much older than the girl you are used to. I know my skin is wrinkled and my hair is grayed. I am not ashamed of my age, because I spent my years wisely. You were a big part of that."

"How?" I asked, "What are we to each other? I know you have known me longer than I have you, that you know what I can do, that you have seen me do it. I have figured that much out. But who are you, truly? Who are you to me?"

"Nothing, not yet. I cannot be anything to you, unless you wish it. You have to wish for me Clark. I will always be there when you wish for me."

She hugged me, and I felt myself slipping from her arms, out of time and reality.

And then, I was home again. I dress, and turn on my computer so I can check the date. It has been exactly three days since I called Chloe and asked her to meet me in the park. I check my messages, but she has not called. Is it because she understands, or because she is furious? Well, I suppose there is only one way to find out.


	7. Author's Note

Author's Note:

Hello.

So, I know it has been a really long time since I have updated, and I apologize for that.

I have a lot of stories going right now, and it can be hard to keep track sometimes, plus sometimes there is writers block, and also life, which unfortunately gets in the way of fan fictions which we all know are more important.

I wanted to assure all of you that while it has been a while, and I do not know how soon I will be updating, I am NOT, I repeat NOT, dropping this story.

I hate when people drop stories, and when I made my account I promised myself I would never drop one.

So, yes, it may be a while, depending on other factors, but I promise you, unless I unexpectedly die, this story and all of the others will be finished. Maybe not today, or this week, or even this month, but they will be. I understand if you don't want to wait around, because it might be a while, but I promise, I will finish these stories. I just wanted to make that clear, and apologize for how long it is taking.

Have a good day.

Sincerely,

~RedTailedHawkens


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